On Monday evening I decided to try a couple of the Black and Tan Experiments I’ve got in store. The first consisted of Magic Rock’s Dark Arts and High Wire.

Dark Arts is Magic Rock’s Stout. I find it has a rather strong burnt malt aroma and taste, that is almost overpowering. There is though a very slight chocolate sweetness at the end that takes some of the edge off of the burnt flavour.

High Wire is a pale ale full of fruity aromas, including lemon, and grapefruit, and apple, to name just three. It leaves a lingering dry aftertaste, which makes you want to drink more, making it a perfect beer from a marketing point of view.

The mix surprisingly had a slightly smokey aroma, with the stout being the more dominant of the beers. It had been mellowed slightly by the pale ale, but not much. I have a feeling that Dark Arts and Cannonball may be the best combination of the Magic Rock beers. When I can get my hands on a bottle of each, I’ll be finding out.

(170)